Dwayne Johnson urges people to talk about depression

Dwayne Johnson actor has admitted that he previously struggled with his mental health. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)

Dwayne Johnson has urged people to "talk about" depression, after admitting he previously struggled with his own mental health.

The 46-year-old actor has admitted that he previously struggled with his mental health, and has vowed to talk openly about his experiences in the hopes of encouraging other people to seek the help they need in treating the illness.

He said: “Depression doesn’t discriminate and I thought that was an important part of the narrative if I was going to share a little bit of my story of the past.

“Regardless of who you are or what you do for a living or where you come from, it doesn’t discriminate, we all kind of go through it. If I could share a little bit of it and if I could help somebody I’m happy to do it.

“The key thing that I found was the most important thing about that, talking about my past in terms of depression, is the revelation and for us to be OK and embracing … especially us as guys, as men. There’s just a DNA, a wiring in us and a constitution that oftentimes doesn’t let us talk about when we’re scared or vulnerable or things like that.

“It’s kind of like what’s been deemed as ‘toxic masculinity’. You’ve got to talk about it and you’re not alone. I was an only child and I kept that bottled in, deep, deep. It wasn’t good, so happy to share my story.”

The ‘Rampage’ star managed to overcome his mental health battle, and recently welcomed his third child, a daughter named Tiana, into the world with his partner Lauren Hashian.

Speaking on UK talk show ‘Lorraine’, Dwayne - who also has 17-year-old daughter Simone with ex-wife Dany Garcia, and two-year-old daughter Jasmine with Lauren - said: “Sleepless nights. We had a baby two weeks ago. Three girls, very blessed, I can’t make boys, I don’t know why, although I try. I’ll continue to practise though, that’s the thing, practise makes a boy one day.

“I thought this time around with baby Tiana when she was born, it was an incredible experience. I’ve learned that you’ve always got to be supportive, you’ve got to be right there supporting mumma, supporting her with words, I hold hands, I hold legs, I did it all. The doctor had said, ‘Would you like to watch? Would you like to come down here?’ I said, ‘No I’m going to stay up here by the head, I’m going to stay by mumma’ and then I thought, you know what it’s my daughter and my third one, I said, ‘Honey I’ll be right back…’. Watching and being part of that process was amazing.”